Poor Old Fool
by Miss Poison Pen
Summary: Grandpa Hino reflects on the changes in his granddaughter and her friends.


Edit: 04/06/2011

Many thanks to _Marz_ for the tip towards the end. It was bothering me and the solution was so close to my face I didn't see it. It has been handled.

Grandpa Hino

Poor Old Fool

Fool. An insult, a joke, a profession.

The word was directed at him so often, he felt as if it were taped onto his back. Though, while the people calling him a fool were in many ways correct, they were very, very wrong. Really, it didn't matter to him anyway what any of those people thought, because they always came to him in the end. They came to him for their luck, their prayers, their problems.

Problems. Another term with so many meanings. In his line of work it could mean something as little as failing a class to something as huge as a demonic possession. And the area had certainly seen a rise in such things of a more demonic nature. Of course, with the Sailor Soldiers around who needed him?

"Grandpa?" Rei asked from where she was sweeping the pavers. "Is everything all right? You're sighing an awful lot."

Grandpa deflected his granddaughter's concern with a laugh she probably knew was fake. She had a sixth sense about her, even better than he had ever managed to train his own. "Just thinking how nice it would be if one of your cute friends came to help out today!"

Rei's eyes narrowed at her grandfather and she offered a light scolding. He rolled with it, laughing the entire time until she turned back to her sweeping.

He was no fool.

It struck him as odd that his granddaughter suddenly gained so many friends those years ago. She had fallen almost seamlessly into a small social circle and tried to pass it off as if she'd known them all her life. The attempts to be casual were what tipped him off.

As time when by, he ticked off the coincidences. Injuries, who she had been hanging out with, where they were planning to be for the day. Even if he had missed all that, there was no way he could have missed how nearly all of Rei's new friends had the same strange feel about them as she did. Something locked deep inside yearning to burst forth.

He accepted it. It was easy to see how they completed each other. Each and every one of those girls seemed to be linked, and without those bonds…what were they? Broken pieces just waiting around to be fixed. No. Not one of them was like that-not even the timid, little one.

More than any of that, he was glad his granddaughter had found friends. He was happy she had found a family she could lean on when he was no longer around. He had quickly satisfied himself with that knowledge and allowed himself to sit back and watch them all grow into the incredible family they were to become.

He remembered when the get-togethers were just a tentative thing. "I might have plans," she would say to him before she left the shrine in the morning. Soon enough, it had evolved into a weekly ritual. Every member of the group would gather somewhere (usually at the shrine or Crown Arcade) to discuss "business" as they liked to call it, catch up on each others' gossip, and study. Of course, they saw each other in between with simple one on one days that strengthened each individual relationship.

He had watched his Rei change from the cold and reserved priestess to the fiery, hot-tempered warrior. He remembered when Rei would be upset because the children her age wouldn't play with her. All because they'd heard about her psychic abilities. To see her acting so openly with the girls who had suddenly appeared in her life was a great relief to him.

He smiled at Ami's personal growth. When he'd met her, getting more than a "hello" out of the girl was like pulling teeth. Now, she stopped by the shrine regularly (and made some nice donations to boot!) to help out or just chat over some tea. She didn't blush so much when he flirted with her anymore, which made Grandpa incredibly proud. To see the girl finally comfortable with herself truly filled him with warmth.

"What are you smiling about?" Rei asked warily.

"It's quiet," Grandpa lied.

"Not for long. Bunny's coming over. She won't be helping, though."

The mention of Usagi made Grandpa chuckle. She was known affectionately as "Bunny" by her friends and family because of her name and because her pigtails resembled rabbit ears. She was always a loud girl and time hadn't changed that a single bit. What had changed, was her resolve. When Grandpa met Usagi, she was a crybaby, she could sleep anywhere, and she never seemed to stop eating. Time had changed her. She was suddenly much more serious, but seemed to play the airhead to force her friends to act childish right along with her. It kept them all feeling young and relaxed even when they were obviously very stressed. She still slept and ate all the time, but to gain such a level of maturity in such a short amount of time excused that in Grandpa's mind.

Maturity. The word was so dependant on the situation and subjects that he sometimes hesitated to use it. When Minako first arrived in the little group, he would have attached it to her in a heartbeat, but it hadn't taken long for her to give in to Usagi's bubble-headed antics. Terror Twins was the only term appropriate in Grandpa's opinion. Still, there was something about Minako that had taken him years to figure out.

For weeks, he'd watched her and finally figured out she was very good at getting people to do what she wanted without actually having to ask them. She had several different tactics, but she always set them up and nudged her victims in the direction she wanted them to go. It was a skill she used in many different ways. She used it to end fights, push her friends forward in life, and also to exact revenge on those who had crossed her. In fact, Grandpa was sure he had heard her talking to Makoto about the whole "ex-boyfriend" thing.

Makoto was the one he hadn't been sure of at first. Troubled was the word he would have picked on their first meeting. She was deeply trouble by something and had distanced herself from others because of it. It was Usagi who had failed to see the distance, Rei had informed him. He was glad for that. It was plain to see that Makoto felt like an outsider at first, but when she found her niche in the group, there had been such a change in her. A softness had found its way into her mannerisms which she reserved only for the most special people in her life.

Grandpa watched Makoto's confidence bloom. He remembered hearing how she felt she wasn't feminine because she was so tall and strong, and he remembered overhearing Minako's words of "it's part of who you are and it's nothing to be ashamed of. We love you for it and others should, too." Makoto's shame vanished slowly, but it certainly made an exit. She held herself high and was finally proud to be who she was.

"You're still smiling," Rei stated, the subtle question of "why" lingering between them.

"I haven't seen Bunny in a long time." The self-satisfied smile didn't escape Rei's notice.

"She was here Monday."

"A long time."

Rei was forced to give in to her grandfather's eccentricity and silence overcame them once again.

"You know, Rei," Grandpa started, completely out of the blue. "I'm proud of you. All of you."

Rei's look of shock confirmed that she was unsure what he was proud of them for, but that she had her suspicions. Her wide eyes softened at his ever-knowing smile.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

He was no fool.

Even if he knew, he would never say a word about it. It was enough for him to be there and offer his advice when they needed it. He would give them guidance, he would give them shelter, he would give them love. Rei and her family. His granddaughter and his other granddaughters. Sailor Mars and the other Sailor Soldiers.


End file.
